Voting method



VOTING METHOD Original Filed April 17, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 281311 l o fT o O O O O f /rc 1/ 26 /11 1/4 mi 90. lama /lfb Wwfwww vfw J Lom I Zg CLIILT United States Patent O 3,286,918 VOTING METHOD Martin A. Coyle, 830 High St., Hamilton, Ohio Continuation of application Ser. No. 105,852, Apr. 17, 1961. This application July 28, 1964, Ser. No. 385,740 2 Claims. (Cl. 235-50) The present application is a continuation of my application Ser. No. 105,852, filed April 17, 1961. The invention relates to a novel voting method which involves the use of a compact and ineXpensive voting machine of the ty.pe disclosed in my application Serial No. 105,- 852, filed April 17, 1961, which is a continuation of my earlier application Serial No. 492,516, filed March 7, 1955 (now abandoned). Such voting machine is adapted to receive a standard size mechanical tabulating card such as is commonly used in the well known IBM, Remington `and Rand or other tabulating machines. Other voting machines -such as disclosed in the applications of Martin A. Coyle and Theodore R. Dinsmore, Serial No. 635,397, filed January 22, 1957, Serial No. 797,659, filed March 6, 1959, both now abandoned, and in Serial No. 193,052, filed April 30, 1962, now Patent No. 3,124,- 092, may also be employed if desired.

In accordance with my invention the voter is supplied by election oflicials with a standard size card of the type referred 'to above, which he then inserts in the machine, punches a hole in the margin of the card or otherwise marks the same at the left or right of the name of the Selected candidate.

The machine is equipped with a magnifying lens Whereby the card is readily visible to the user of the apparatus standing in front of the machine and whose eye is substantially at a focus point of the lens, while the card is substantially invisible to others at the vicinity who are not at the proper distance from the lens. For this reason a curtained booth is not essential, though the conventional voting booth may -be employed if desired where such booth is already available. Where the booth is not available the machine may be used without the booth, thus resulting in a considerabe saving. Moreover, the present machine is much cheaper than ordinary voting machines but performs substantially the same function in a more efiicient manner.

My improved method involves the steps of supplying the voter with an individual ballot card which is formed of relatively stiff material and which is of a size and shape adapted for use with a conventional tabulating machine, placing the card in the machine by the voter so t-hat the card is always visible to him but not to others, this being facilitated by the use of magnifying, lens incorporated as an integral part of the voting machine, then mechanically marking the card by the voter while the card is in the machine, followed by removing the card from the machine and subsequently tabulating the marked cards of a plurality of Voters 'b-y the election officials with the aid of a standard tabulating apparatus for which the card is adapted.

The invention also relates to new and usefulirnpr'ovements and Structural refinements in voting machnes and the principal object of the invention is to substantially simplify and expediate the procedure of registering and counting votes.

The above object is attained by the provision of a voting machine Which is especially adapted to utilize as a ballot a standard size mechanical tabulating card, such as that commonly employed in the well known International Business Machines Corporation, Remington- Rand, Incorporated, or other similar tabulating systems.

In accordance with my invention each voter is supplied with an individual ballot comprising a standard size me- M 3,286,9l8 Ice Patented Nov. 22, 1966 chanical tabulating card having indcia thereon, after which the voter insert-s the card in a marking machine wherein the card is at all times visible to the voter but is invisible to anyone else. 'I'he card is mechanically marked in the machine while fully visible to the voter so that he can determine whether or not any mistakes have been made in the voting, after which the card is removed by the voter from the machine for subsequ-ent tabulation. A plurality of the marked ballots are subsequently tabulated in a standard tabulating machine, and owing to the standard size of the marking any fraudulent ballots will be readily detected by the tabulating machine.

An important feature of the invention, therefore, resides in the provision of a machine 'having means for receiving and accommodating a standard size mechanical tabulating card therein. Another feature of the invention involves the provision of means for selectively and individaully punching or otherwise marking such a card at a plurality of predetermined points to register the vote, whereby the cards so marked may be subsequently tabulated and the votes counted by conventional tabulating machines of the International Business Machines Corporation, Remington-Rand, Inc., or other similar system.

Some of the advantages of the invention reside in its simplicity of construction and operation and in the adaptability to economical manufacture.

In accordance with my invention a magnifying lens is been accurately done. The use of the magnifying lens in conjunction with standard size tabulating cards or ballots having relatively small indcia thereon makes possible the use of much smaller voting machine than is now in general operation, thus providing a great saving in expense to the public at large while insuring that the voting machine may be used by any voter owing to the large size of the magnification. When using a standard size IBM card, which is approximately 3% inches by 7% in-ches, after allowing space for headngs and descriptive matter required by election rules, there remains sufiicient space for 144 printed names using a two-column ballot.

Also, the use of machine made punch or other marks on a ballot card which is subsequently run through a tabulating machine makes it possible to readily detect fraud due to unauthorized punching of the card by means other than the voting machine, since due to the minute tolerance permissible in machine tabulation any fraudulent marking would be readily detected in the tabulating machine and an unauthorized ballot will be automatically discharged by the tabulating machine and will be declared invalid.

With the above more important objects and features in view and such otherobjects and features as may become apparent as this specification proceeds, the invention resides in the arrangement of parts and details of construction, substantially as shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein like characters of reference are used to designate like parts and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view of a voting machine according to the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a Vertical sectional view, taken sub- 3 tabulating card used as a ballot in the voting machine;

FIGURE 6 is a reverse side view of the ballot card;

FIGURE 7 is a simple wiring diagram illustrating the operative -connection between the perforating and actuating members used in the invention; f

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary sectional view, similar to that shown in FIGURE 3 but illustrating a modified form of means for punching or marking the ballot cards;

FIGURE 9 is a front elevational view, similar to that shown in FIGURE 1, but illustrating the voting machine with a laterally disposed ballot card entrance; and

FIGURE 10 is a plan view of a ballot card used in the machine shown in FIGURE 9.

With reference now to the accompanying drawing in detail, more particularly FIGURES 1-7 thereof, the voting machine is designated by the numeral 10 and comprises a generally upright housing 11 provided therein with a generally upright compartment 12 constituting a card holder or guide means adapted to receive a ballot in the form of a conventional mechanical tabulating card 13 such as is commonly used in the well known International Business Machines Corporation, Remington- Rand, Inc., or other similar tabulating systems.

While a standard size card of this type may be employed, if desired such a card may be provided at one end thereof with an extension or tab 14, so that when the card is inserted in the compartment 12, this tab will project upwardly through an entrance 15 provided at the top of the housing for the compartment or card holder 12. The entrance 15 has downwardly convergent Walls as shown in FIGURE 2 to elfectively guide the card 13 into the card holder or guide means and after the card has been inserted, it may be readily removed by virtue of its projecting tab portion 14.

To facilitate assembly, the housing 11 is preferably composed of complemental front and rear sections 11a, 11b, respectively, which are secured together in any suitable manner and have abutting inner walls 16, 17, respectively, providing front and rear compartments within the upright housing. The wall 17 of the rear housing section 11b constitutes the back wall -of the card holder 12, while the wall 16 of the housing section lla is recessed as shown, so that the card holder 12 has an open front constituting a window portion through which the inserted card m-ay be viewed from the front of the machine. However, the recessed edge portions 16' of the wall 16 are undercut so as to form keeper means for the side and bottom edge portions of the card 13 in the compartment, as is clearly shown in FIGURE 3. As will be apparent, when a ballot card 13 is inserted into the machine it will be initially guided into the member 12 by means of the convergent Walls at entrance portion 15 thereof and will drop by gravity to the bottom of the holder, being guided in its downward movement by the recessed side edge portions 16' which snugly fit the card 'and hold it a predetermined distance from the front wall of the housing in which are mounted suitable viewing means to be hereinafter described. The recessed bottom portion of the wall 16 provides a positive stop terminatng the downward movement of the ballot in the card holder or guide 12.

The ballot card 13 is printed on its face with names of candidates as indicated at 18 and for write in candidates as indicated at 19. Moreover, the card is provided adjacent the name of each candidate or write in space with a blank area 20 to receive a perforation or some other marking, which corresponds to and registers the voter' s choice. In FIGURE such perforations or markings are indicated at 21.

The front wall 22 of the housing section 11a is provided with a sight opening or window 23 having a magnifying lens 24 mounted therein by a mounting frame 25 and when the card 13 is inserted in the compartment 12, the data on the face of the card may be easily viewed through the lens 24. A suitable lamp 26 is provided in the front housing section 11a for illuminating the ballot card.

The means for pun-ching or otherwise marking the card 13 comprise 'a plurality of perfor-ating or marking members 27 provided o-n the armatures of electro-magnets 28 mounted -on the rear surface-of the rear wall 17 of the card holder -or guide means 12, the members 27 being projectable forwardly through apertures in the wall 17 so as to punch or otherwise mark the card in the compartment. The magnets 28 with the associated perforatin'g or marking members 27 are so located that the members punch or mark the card 13 in the aforernentioned blarrk areas 20. I'f desired, the back wall of the housing section 11b may be equipped with a suitable door 17c, so that access to the magnets 2-8 may b-e had for purposes of inspection or repair.

As will be apparent, immediately after punching the action taken by the voter at once becomes visible to him, and if there has been any error in marking he may remove and destroy the card and obtain a new card from the election ofiicials.

The operation of the perforatin g or marking members '27 is controlled by a pl-urality of a-ctuating buttons 29 mounted in the front wall 22 of the housi-ng at the op-' posite sides of the lens 24, and preferably in optical align ment with the names of the respective c-andidates on the ballot card, in which position the buttons a-re readily accessible to the voter who may at the same time keep the ballot card in view, each of these buttons being associated with an inidividual switch 29a and the several switches being in circuit with the respective magnets 28 'and a suitable source of current 30. In this manner the members 27 are actuated selectively and individually by the respective buttons 29, as Will be clearly apparent.

When the machine is placed in operation, a voter simply inserts his or her ballot card 13 into the compartment 12 and o'bserves the names of the candidates on the card through the magnifying lens 24. The-n by pushing appropriate of the actuating buttons 29, the voter will cause the appropriate members 27 to punch or otherwise mark' the ballot card at the appropriate, predetermined areas, that is, adjacent the names of the chosen candidates, thus registering the vote on the ballot. If the voter wishes to select a write in candidate, he may -do so by simply actuati-ng a button to punch or otherwise mark the card adjacent 'the write in space 19, and after removing the card from the machine, writing the name of the write in candidate in a space on the 'back of the ballot card, as shown at 31 in FIGURE 6.

While the pairs of buttons 29 may be so placed at the sides of the lens '24 'as t-o appear in optical' alignment with' the names of the respective candida-tes on the ballot card in t-he compartment 12, the buttons themselves may be appropriately marked with the names of the candidates to prevent any possibility of confusion.

After the voter has registered his vote, the ballot card is removed from the compartment 12 by means of the tab 14 and is deposited with other ballot cards for subsequent tabulating and vote countin-g by conventional tabulating and counting machines of the International Business Machines, Remington-Rand, or other similar system. By using machine made punch marks on a ballot card which is subsequently run through a standard tabulating machine it is possible to readily detect fraud due to unauth-orized punching of the cards by means other than that of the voting machine.

It is to be understood that the vote on the ballot card is preferably registered by a punch mark -and that any suitable marking means and marking mechanism may be employed within the scope of my invention, though the electro-magnetic type already described is preferre'd.

Thus, for example, a mechanical arrangement may be,

suitable brackets 34 on the wall 17. Compression Springs 35, on the stems 32, may be used to urge the buttons 29a to their normal, outwardly projected positions.

In the modified 'form of the invention shown in F=IG- URES 9 and 10, the machine is similar to that already described, with the exception that it is disposed in a laterally lyin g position, With the ballot card entrance 15 at one side of the machine. In such event, the actuating buttons 29 may be provided at the other side of the machine as shown, and the ballot card itself is used in a horizontal position, as illustr ated in 'FIGURE 10.

While in the foregoing there have been described and shown preferred embodiments of the invention, various modifications may become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention relates. Accordingly, it is not desired to limit the invention to this `disclosure, and various modificatio-ns may be resorted to, such -as may lie within the Spirit and soope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A method of secret voting without the necessity of using a vot-ing booth comprising the steps of:

(1) supplyng each vote-r With a-n individual ballot having voting indicia thereon comprising a tabulating card sufliciently stifl to resist tearing and bending and of a size and shape to -fit a conventional tabulating machine to be used for tabulating a plurality of the individual ballots and to fit into an en closed votin g machine,

(2) insertin g by act of the v-oter an individual ballot into said voting machine,

(3) magni fy-ing the total ballot by means of a magnifying lens incorporated as an integral part of the voting machine while the ballot is within the voting machine and focusing the magnified total ballot at a voting position in front of the machine so that the ballot voting indicia is at once visible eXcl-usively to a voter standing in the votin g position,

(4) viewing by act of the voter the total ballot from the voting position,

(5) marking, by act of the voter, the :ballot in registered relation to the indicia by suitable means accessible to the Voter at the fnont of the voting machine while the ballot is still housed within the machine and totally visible to the voter,

(6) removing by act o-f the voter the marked ballot from the voting machine,

(7) depositi-ng by act of the voter the marked ballot into the custody of election ofiicials, and

(8) tabulating a plurality of said individually marked ballots of a plurality of Voters by means of a tabulating machine for which said individual ballots 'are especially adapted, said tabulating machine being -a separate machine from the voting machine.

2. A method as set forth in claim 1, wherein the marki ng of the card is performed by a punchng operation from the surface of the card remote from the voter.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS RICHARD B. WILKINSON, Primary Exam'ner. LEO SMILOW, Examner.

C. G. COVELL, I. G. MURRAY Assistant Examners. 

1. A METHOD OF SECRET VOTING WITHOUT THE NECESSITY OF USING A VOTING BOOTH COMPRISING THE STEPS OF: (1) SUPPLYING EACH VOTER WITH AN INDIVIDUAL BALLOT HAVING VOTING INDICIA THEREON COMPRISING A TABULATING CARD SUFFICIENTLY STIFF TO RESIST TEARING AND BENDING AND OF A SIZE AND SHAPE OF FIT A CONVENTIONAL TABULATING MACHINE TO BE USED FOR TABULATING A PLURALITY OF THE INDIVIDUAL BALLOTS AND TO FIT INTO AN ENCLOSED VOTING MACHINE, (2) INSERTING BY ACT OF THE VOTER AN INDIVIDUAL BALLOT INTO SAID VOTING MACHINE, (3) MAGNIFYING THE TOTAL BALLOT BY MEANS OF A MAGNIFYING LENS INCORPORATED AS AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE VOTING MACHINE WHILE THE BALLOT IS WITHIN THE VOTING MACHINE AND FOCUSING THE MAGNIFIED TOTAL BALLOT AT A VOTING POSITION IN FRONT OF THE MACHINE SO THAT THE BALLOT VOTING INDICIA IS AT ONCE VISIBLE EXCLUSIVELY TO A VOTER STANDING IN THE VOTING POSITION, (4) VIEWING BY ACT OF THE VOTER THE TOTAL BALLOT FROM THE VOTING POSITION, (5) MARKING, BY ACT OF THE VOTER, THE BALLOT IN REGISTERED RELATION TO THE INDICIA BY SUITABLE MEANS ACCESSIBLE TO THE VOTER AT THE FRONT OF THE VOTING MACHINE WHILE THE BALLOT IS STILL HOUSED WITHIN THE MACHINE AND TOTALLY VISIBLE TO THE VOTER, (6) REMOVING BY ACT OF THE VOTER THE MARKED BALLOT FROM THE VOTING MACHINE, (7) DEPOSITING BY ACT OF THE VOTER THE MARKED BALLOT INTO THE CUSTODY OF ELECTION OFFICIALS, AND (8) TABULATING A PLURALITY OF SAID INDIVIDUALLY MARKED BALLOTS OF A PLURALITY OF VOTERS BY MEANS OF A TABULATING MACHINE FOR WHICH SAID INDIVIDUAL BALLOTS ARE ESPECIALLY ADAPTED, SAID TABULATING MACHINE BEING A SEPARATE MACHINE FROM THE VOTING MACHINE. 